He'Brew Genesis 15:15 - Shmaltz Brewing Company

nhindian

Pennsylvania

3.95/5  rDev -6.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

22oz bottle poured into a snifter.

A - Pours a dark, bold mahogany color that is tough to see through. Around a finger's worth of tan head tops off the beer with decent retention and leaves a foamy cap in its wake. Lacing isn't bad either, as a smattering of residual head lingers around the edges.

S - The nose is heavy on the barrel and rye whiskey. I was expecting a lot of sweet fruits due to the juice additions to this, but it's actually fairly bitter and I'm getting more chocolate and rye spiciness than anything. Pretty malty all-around, with a bit of grape in the background.

T - In the mouth, this beer definitely explores the ingredients more comprehensively, as each fruit is clearly present, with the pomegranate and grape leading the way while the figs and dates serve more as a way to flesh out the back-end. It's interesting to note how the barrel was so present in the nose, but seems to fall away here, as the oak isn't well-defined, but the rye whiskey is still as noticeable. This creates an interesting dichotomy of flavors; the fruit juices impart a tart tanginess, while the chocolate and rye cuts this with a bitter spiciness. The finish does have a bit of alcohol heat as well.

M - Mouthfeel is moderately heavy-bodied with lowish carbonation. This is a pretty thick beer that has a touch of chewiness to it and it really lingers on the palate with its long finish.

D/O - Drinkability is moderate. I enjoyed how the barrel-aging impacted this beer, as it adds a nice rye kick without dominating the other aspects. I thought the fruit would've been the main focus of this beer, but the malts seem to have the lasting appeal in the flavor as well as the strong alcohol presence. Still pretty good and worth a try, though!

Serving type: bottle

01-23-2012 04:02:20 | More by nhindian

Dactrius

Wisconsin

4/5  rDev -5%

05-05-2013 18:33:39 | More by Dactrius

dsaudio

Colorado

5/5  rDev +18.8%

04-14-2013 13:45:29 | More by dsaudio

cvm4

Mississippi

4.16/5  rDev -1.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Pours like the color of a cola with a one finger tan head. Doesn't seem thick or viscous.

S - The whiff at first is a big dose of bourbon, vanilla, leather and followed by dark fruits with a sweeter ending.

T - The taste is flipped from the smell... Big vanilla, molasses and dark fruit taste up front and the encore is a bourbon & oak finish. Very complex & rich.

M - Medium to full mouthfeel that's sticky and somewhat cloying.

O - Very good, very complex, very rich... I'm glad I waited to crack this as age seemed to do it wonders.

Serving type: bottle

04-04-2013 01:00:37 | More by cvm4

grahamboudreaux

Tennessee

4/5  rDev -5%

03-17-2013 13:50:22 | More by grahamboudreaux

Morey

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev +1%

03-02-2013 03:36:58 | More by Morey

madnismo

Florida

4/5  rDev -5%

02-24-2013 02:48:50 | More by madnismo

dvmin98

North Carolina

3.25/5  rDev -22.8%

02-22-2013 00:03:39 | More by dvmin98

FrankK

Alabama

4/5  rDev -5%

02-18-2013 00:40:55 | More by FrankK

BugTownPub

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev -5%

02-06-2013 04:30:55 | More by BugTownPub

DmanGTR

New York

4/5  rDev -5%

01-30-2013 13:13:49 | More by DmanGTR

hopswap1

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev +1%

01-30-2013 03:36:19 | More by hopswap1

sneaks2210

New York

4.5/5  rDev +6.9%

01-25-2013 02:46:24 | More by sneaks2210

Bakker

Illinois

4.5/5  rDev +6.9%

01-19-2013 17:01:55 | More by Bakker

superspak

Michigan

4.43/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

22 ounce bottle into snifter, bottled 9/7/2011. Pours an extremely dark brown/almost black color; with a 1 finger foamy khaki head with good retention, that reduces to a ring of lace and spotty bubbles that linger. Slight foamy lacing on the glass, but at 13.4%, this is expected. Aromas of big caramel, raisin, prune, fig, toast, toffee, grape, molasses, chocolate, vanilla, bourbon, oak, earth, leather, and light rye spiciness; slight alcohol as it warms. Damn nice aromas with great complexity and balance of maltiness and barrel character. Taste of huge toffee, caramel, raisin, prune, fig, molasses, toast, oak, bourbon, vanilla, chocolate, earth, tobacco, leather, and light rye spiciness. Minimal bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of toffee, toast, raisin, prune, fig, caramel, molasses, oak, bourbon, vanilla, chocolate, leather, and light rye spiciness on the finish for a good bit. Fantastic complexity of malty flavors with a great complimenting balance of the barrel character; with nearly zero cloying flavors noticed after the finish. Light-medium carbonation and very full bodied; with a very creamy, slick, and fairly syrupy mouthfeel that is fantastic. Alcohol is insanely well hidden at 13.4% with only a small warming noticed after the finish. Overall this is a highly fantastic barrel aged barleywine with fruit juices! The flavors from the fruit juices are not overpowering, and the malt complexity of the barelywine is highly complex. Very smooth to sip on as well for the gravity. An incredibly enjoyable offering.

Serving type: bottle

01-17-2013 05:12:12 | More by superspak

TonyTalon

Wisconsin

4/5  rDev -5%

01-07-2013 23:28:20 | More by TonyTalon

atone315

Wisconsin

4.5/5  rDev +6.9%

01-05-2013 20:35:10 | More by atone315

IMSPEAKNOENGLISH

Illinois

4.75/5  rDev +12.8%

12-09-2012 17:14:25 | More by IMSPEAKNOENGLISH

tdm168

North Carolina

4/5  rDev -5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - dark brown with ruby edges; big brown head

S - candy sugar, caramel, nutty

T - sweet, caramel, sugary, earthy, woody, nutty

M - full bodied, sticky, smooth, well carbonated

This was a pretty nice beer. It came across as a very big, bold brown ale. It was a tad sweet but not cloyingly so. I liked this one. I would have it again.

Serving type: bottle

11-30-2012 01:45:07 | More by tdm168

Grant35

California

4.5/5  rDev +6.9%

11-29-2012 17:58:05 | More by Grant35

Pookie

Georgia

4/5  rDev -5%

10-31-2012 19:45:14 | More by Pookie

elgiacomo

Georgia

4.23/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 3 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

16oz Growler from Beverage World. Just past 1 year old on the keg. Served at cellar temperature.

Pours dark brown with red highlights and a one finger tan head that recedes to just a light ring and leaves just a few spots of short-lived lacing behind.

Aroma starts with the Rye Whiskey and oak, then moves to a big blast of dark fruits, the figs and dates come through particularly well, the grapes and pomegranates are here, very rich smelling, very fruity, very strong and very good.

Flavor is even more rich and intense than the aroma. More about the dark fruits here. Tons and tons of dates and figs, strong notes of grapes and pomegranates, and the whiskey and oak come through in the middle to the finish. Somewhat sweet. Some people say they get soy sauce, but I don’t really get it...all about the dark fruits and whiskey barrels for me. There is some alcohol, but for over 13% ABV it is incredibly well-hidden.

Mouthfeel is medium/full bodied, somewhat sticky, low-ish carbonation, but at times still feels a little prickly.

Passed on the bottles last year, and really regret it now, but stoked to get a chance to try this on draft. This stuff is incredible, very rich, complex and delicious!

Serving type: growler

10-13-2012 04:22:11 | More by elgiacomo

brendaniel

Pennsylvania

3.75/5  rDev -10.9%

10-09-2012 00:29:27 | More by brendaniel

tbeq00

California

4.75/5  rDev +12.8%

10-05-2012 04:15:03 | More by tbeq00

shand

Florida

4.35/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

This beer is a monster. Genesis 15:15 pours a deep viscous brown, and has aromas of sweet and dark fruits, vanilla, bourbon, and oak. The taste here is very complex and delicious, it's incredibly heavy on the fruit flavors. There's a lot of different fruit flavor going on here over strong caramel malts. The rye bourbon helps out here, adding a welcome boozy edge to the proceedings that would be otherwise covered up by the fruits. More oak comes in on the finish. The mouthfeel is heavy and drying, but there's a strange sticky aspect here too that kinda clashes with the dry feel. The drinkability is great. Overall, this is an excellent barrel aged barleywine, the barrel really supports the very fruity base beer.

Serving type: bottle

09-30-2012 02:07:44 | More by shand